Back On My Feet
by CJS51703
Summary: When Undyne gets injured, she gets just as badly hindered mentally as she is physically...
1. Chapter 1

*****Hello, everyone! This is one of those stories that I'm kinda making up as I go along, but this is one that I first came up with a few months ago but never actually did. So, here was go. Alphys and Undyne belong to Toby Fox, their son belongs to me, and let's roll!**

**Chapter One: Torn**

Alphys was tending to her two-month-old son when she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She assumed it was Undyne calling to check in; ever since the fish had gone back to work, she would call her wife a time or two each just to make sure things were okay. Raising an infant wasn't exactly an easy task, after all.

So, Alphys took out her phone and sat that it was actually an unfamiliar number. Before she could try to think of whose number it could've been, her son, Arrow tried to grab at whatever metal thing was making noise.

"N-no, Arrow, that's m-mine," Alphys said sternly. But any chance of her words being firm in the slightest was gone with her stutter. Still, she picked up.

"H-hello?"

"Hey, is this Undyne's wife?"

The voice was unfamiliar. It evidently belonged to a male, but who couldn't be placed.

"Y-yes... wh-who is this?"

"Mason. I'm one of Undyne's other officers at the police station. She gave me your number and told me to call you if she couldn't get to the phone to explain."

"Explain wh-what?"

"She messed up her right knee pretty badly out when we were catching some guys. Once we locked them up, me and another officer-Josh, shut up-took her to the hospital. Turns out, she tore her ACL a bit. She's in surgery now, so we're waiting for a doctor."

"O-oh my God... I-I'm coming right a-away."

Then, they both hung up. Alphys knew that a torn ACL was a pretty bad injury that took a long while to recover from. And she knew that Undyne wasn't necessarily a patient person.

She pulled up the contacts menu on her phone and tapped on Toriel's name. She sighed and waited, internally pleading for a reply through the rings. At last, there was one.

"Hello?"

"H-hya. Can you c-come over and b-babysit? N-now? It's, um, u-urgent."

"Alright. But what's the situation."

Alphys exhaled, rubbing her face.

"U-Undyne's in the h-hospital."

*****I know, I know, slow chapter, but I'm working on the next one. Hopefully, there'll be more plot and less exposition. Just stick with me. Anyways, be sure to leave a review on the way out and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

*****Hello, everyone! Boy, does this story take some researching... Alphys and Undyne belong to Toby Fox, Josh and Mason belong to me (although they were based off of people I know), and let's go!**

**Chapter Two: Post-Op**

After Toriel arrived, Alphys went off to the hospital. She saw two men in police uniforms playing on a cell phone.

"A-are you M-Mason?" Alphys asked.

Mason and the other man looked up. "Hey. You must be who I called. This idiot's Josh," he said.

"I'm not an idiot, but I won the game," Josh said after a few more taps at the cell phone, which seemed to be his.

"Shut up, her wife's in surgery," Mason said. He turned to Alphys again. "So, what's your name?" he asked.

"I-I'm Dr. Alphys. F-forgive the stutter," Alphys said as she sat down.

"Don't sweat it," Mason said.

"You're a doctor. So how do you think Undyne's gonna bounce back?" Josh asked.

"Well, it's an A-ACL tear, so it's n-no scrape or b-bruise. However, U-Undyne's in good ph-physical shape, so p-perhaps her knee's h-healing will be a b-bit sped u-up. B-but... she's v-very impatient and r-rarely rests," Alphys explained.

"So we're hoping for a good turnout, if she complies?" Mason summarized.

"I th-think so, y-yes," Alphys said.

"Good. 'Cause she's kinda handy around the station. And we learned not to underestimate her the hard way. How was I supposed to know that she had spears?" Josh asked.

Mason snickered at the memory. "That was pretty funny," he said.

"Y-yeah, d-don't get on Undyne's b-bad side," Alphys said.

Josh nodded. "Well, I know that _now_."

XxX

Eventually, the three were allowed into Undyne's recovery room. When they got there, she still looked a bit out of it. She was laying with her injured knee still propped up and bandaged.

"Visitors are here," Mason said simply. "One of which you apparently had sex with," Josh added. He was then smacked on the back of the head.

Undyne looked up at them and gave a slight smile. "Hey," she said.

"H-hi," Alphys said, going over to the bedside and taking Undyne's hand, the other hand moving to stroke her loose hair.

"Hey, babe," Undyne siad. She sat up enough for a kiss, then laid back down. "H-how are you f-feeling?" Alphys asked.

"Fuzzy in the head. And my knee hurts _so _much," Undyne said.

"W-well, you can e-expect that for a wh-while. A t-torn ACL is p-painful, even a-after you get out of s-surgery," Alphys explained.

"So how long does it take to get over this?" Undyne asked.

Well, that was what Alphys was unfortunately waiting to be asked. She decided to just get it out and done. "If a-all goes well... s-six to nine m-months."

Undyne's eye widened.

"We didn't know that either," Mason clarified. "Yeah," Josh said, although he came off as more shocked than his friend.

Undyne was silent for a few moments. Then, she looked at Josh and Mason. "Can you two go? I want to be alone. With Alphys," she said.

"I wanted to see more of girls kissing," Josh protested. "Come on," Mason said before pulling Josh out, shutting the door behind him.

"Y-you know, I'm just e-e-estimating. Your d-doctor could say o-otherwise. Maybe a f-far shorter ti-" Alphys stopped talking when Undyne held up her hand.

Eventually, the fish let her arm fall with a sigh. Alphys watched her, hating to know that she was hurting in more ways than her knee. "A-are you okay?" she asked quietly.

Undyne closed her eye.

"Ask me that after I know how long I won't be able to walk."

*****Hopefully this chapter had a bit more to it than the last. Anyways, I've got to finish up my history homework. Be sure to leave a review on the way out and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!**


	3. Chapter 3

*****Hello, everyone! This story is a bit difficult to write for-okay, more than a bit difficult. Y'know what? I'll shut up now. Alphys and Undyne belong to Toby Fox, Arrow belongs to me, and let's go!**

**Chapter Three: Down, Down, Down**

There was good news and bad news. The good news was that Undyne was discharged from the hospital the next day.

The bad news was that she was discharged with a bulky, metal brace wrapped around her whole leg and keeping it at a bent position and on crutches, with instructions to stay off of her leg for as long as possible for two weeks.

This would be a long two weeks.

XxX

Alphys was a bit beyond concerned at this point. She was driving herself and Undyne home from the hospital, but she'd brought Arrow along instead of giving Toriel a hassle over watching him again.

Because of how long Undyne's legs were and the position of her brace, she was forced to lay out in the backseat with her back against the interior of the car door. Arrow's car seat was in the passenger seat.

But that was the smaller of the two reasons behind Alphys' worrying. It was an hour drive home, and they'd been driving for half an hour. Every time the car hit a red light or a traffic stop, the small dinosaur would glance up at the mirror above her dash.

And Undyne would be completely silent.

Other than playing with a small card in her hand, she was completely still as well. The card was an appointment card-when the two weeks was up, she was supposed to go back to the hospital. She kept looking at it as she played with it. Her expression, for someone who normally wore her emotions on her face, was unreadable. It was actually a bit scary.

"Ah?" came a tiny voice that belonged to Arrow. Alphys let him hold her finger as she drove on, his touch a gentle but much-needed reminder that not everything that she held close to her heart was out of whack.

At last, she had to speak up. "U-U-Undyne?" she asked.

"Hm?" Undyne hummed almost inaudibly. Hitting a traffic jam, Alphys looked to the backseat. "Are... a-are you okay?" she asked.

Undyne didn't look at her. All she did was reply with a single, flat word.

"Drive."

Afraid to press any limits, when the traffic cleared, Alphys did just that.

XxX

The rest of the ride home was silent. When they got home, Alphys got out first, then got Arrow out of his car seat. Then came Undyne. "D-do you need a-any help?" Alphys offered, uncertain of her own words.

Undyne finally looked at her. But she wasn't necessarily happy. "I can get out on my own," she replied coldly. She then made her attempt to do so. Alphys stood back and watched, keeping her mouth shut.

Every time Undyne's leg bumped up against something, she let out mumbled curses. But eventually, she did get out and balance herself on her crutches.

As she limped inside, Alphys silently followed. But she made sure to keep her distance. She had common sense.

Eventually, they got up to their room. Undyne crossed the threshold first. But before Alphys could follow, she was finally spoken to.

"Can you just... leave me be?" Undyne turned around. The look in her eye wasn't angry or flat. It was depressed; just as depressed as her tone. "I want to be alone for a while," she said.

"S-sure. Yeah, I g-get it. Arrow, uh, n-needs to be p-put down for his nap a-anyways. Um... k-kisses first?" Alphys asked, her voice wavering at the last part.

Undyne shook her head. She shut the door and went into her room instead.

XxX

Alphys stood over Arrow's crib. The infant slept peacefully, his thumb in his mouth as he did so. Alphys smiled, but with how caught up in her thoughts she was, it was rather bittersweet.

Undyne had been hurt before, and the most it did was frustrate her.

So why was this time so much different?

*****Hopefully things will pick up a bit and some answers to things will be given in the next chapter. Be sure to leave a review on the way out and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!**


	4. Chapter 4

*****Hello, everyone! I've been keeping up with those reviews, and if you think stuff's been going down in the past few chapters, then wait 'til ya read this one! Alphys, Undyne, and Papyrus belong to Toby Fox, and let's go!**

**Chapter Four: Snapped**

The next week passed as slow as molasses. Undyne hardly spoke or even ate. Heck, she only moved from her bed if she needed to use the bathroom or shower. And even then, she was slow about it.

Alphys tried everything she could to get a word out while getting her work down and taking care of Arrow. She was doing a lot, putting it simply. And she would only back off if Undyne growled at her, a bit like a feral dog.

At last, Alphys decided that she needed help.

XxX

"So she will hardly talk, eat, or move from her bedroom?" Papyrus asked, stepping into Alphys' living room. He'd been called over earlier that day.

"Y-yes. M-maybe you can help? Y-you're her best f-friend, so... it's a p-possibility," the dinosaur said.

"The Great Papyrus will put his best effort into this endeavor," Papyrus promised.

"Th-thanks," Alphys said.

The two went up the stairs and carefully went into Undyne's room. She was laying there, her injured leg propped up, her eye on the ceiling.

"Um... P-Papyrus came to v-visit. Maybe y-you two could ch-ch-chat for a wh-while?" Alphys said. Undyne didn't move.

Curious, Papyrus walked over. "So, how do you feel?" he asked.

"You want to know how I feel, punk?" Undyne sneered. And before Papyrus could get a word out, he was punched right in the jaw. The impact was so strong and sudden that he fell down. He got up, rubbing where he'd been hit. "Owie," he whimpered.

"Screw off before I have to hit you again," Undyne muttered. That was when Alphys had to intervene.

"H-he just asked h-how you felt! I know that you're a-a-aggressive, b-but-" She was stopped when a spear's tip was suddenly at her throat.

"And _I _know that you've constantly been up my butt, trying to get me to talk. But there are some things that hurt to mention! Like how it hurts _you _to mention the Amalgamates! And how it hurt you, Papyrus, to never have been let into the Guard because you're too nice to survive! And I will hurt you both if you don't get out right now!" Undyne yelled at the top of her lungs.

If bones could go any paler, then Papyrus' cheekbones did at that moment. "U-Undyne..." Alphys trailed off.

But she was picked up by the shirt collar and thrown down onto the ground. Hard.

"I said, GET OUT!" Undyne bellowed. Papyrus was quick to pull Alphys up and retreat from the room with her. Undyne spent the next ten minutes silently fuming, letting her rage seep out. When it finally did, she realized what she'd done.

She'd hit her best friend. She'd thrown down the love of her life.

And for those reasons, she laid back down and cried.

*****Time is a tool you can put on the wall, or wear it on-oh, you're here now. Sorry about that. Anyways, be sure to leave a review on the way out, and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!**

**And don't say that I didn't warn you~**


	5. Chapter 5

*****Hello, everyone! Here I am with a... fairly important chapter that I'm hoping was pulled off correctly. We'll just have to see, though! Alphys and Undyne belong to Toby Fox, Arrow belongs to me, and let's roll!**

**Chapter Five: Apology**

Over the next week, Undyne and Alphys barely spoke to each other. Alphys resolved to sleeping on the couch, primarily because she was the only one between the girls that could fit longways.

The whole time, Undyne's thoughts remained a mystery. And the whole time, Alphys' thoughts were focused on that mystery; one that she would never be able to solve on her own, no matter how smart she was.

XxX

Alphys couldn't sleep. For some reason, sleep had just fleeted from her. So, she decided to get some work done, or maybe watch some anime. At least, until she could fall asleep. Or until she heard Arrow crying, it was whatever came first.

She opened her laptop, only to get the symbol on the screen that indicated that she needed to charge it. She sighed and shut it, standing up.

Maybe she could get into her room and grab her charger without waking up Undyne.

XxX

Undyne couldn't sleep. That had become common recently. However, she had something to say this time that would maybe ease her into an ability to sleep. She got up and grabbed her crutches-God, she hated them already-and steadied herself on them. Then, she limped into Arrow's nursery.

She watched him sleep peacefully under his little blanket. He had no problems in life. And it was Undyne's promise to herself that she would keep things that way, or at least try.

But if she kept up how she was acting at the moment...

At last, she sighed, feeling something crumble inside of her. That might've been her resolve.

"I know you're asleep, and you probably don't understand a thing I'm saying if you're even listening. But... I did something really, really bad last week. I punched my best friend, and threw your other mom onto the floor. I thought that they were the problem. Maybe my leg was the problem. But... it's none of that. It's just me as a whole that's the problem here," she said.

She laughed sadly. "I'm a real punk."

Arrow stirred a little, but kept sleeping otherwise.

"When you momma was pregnant with you, I made a promise to myself. That I would try my best to give you a great life, and keep you problem-free. I knew that such isn't actually _possible_, but a girl can certainly try. And I'm being a problem with my mess of..."

With that, Undyne began to snap. She shut her eye to force back tears. When she opened it, she slid her finger into Arrow's tiny hand. When she felt his gentle grip in reply, that was it. She let quiet tears drip down from her eye, and she kept saying the same thing repeatedly.

"I'm sorry... oh, God, I'm sorry..."

"U-Undyne?"

The fish monster snapped her head up and quickly wiped her face and eye of any evidence of her tears. Then, she turned to the doorway.

Alphys was standing there. "Uh... h-hi?" she said nervously.

Undyne sighed, limping over. "How much of that did you hear?" she asked.

"I-I heard enough. I don't m-mean to f-force anything out of y-you, but... it's l-lead you to t-tears and v-violence. You're h-hurt yourself b-before. So why is th-this time d-different?" Alphys asked.

Undyne looked down and bit her lip, as she did when she was really thinking on something. At last, she looked up. "Our room. Now," she said seriously. She went on first and Alphys followed down the hallway.

They both sat down on their bed together. Undyne brushed some hair form her face. "I should have said this earlier," she said. "Y-yes?" Alphys asked.

Undyne squeezed her wife's hand, tracing the outline of her wedding band with her thumb.

*****I know that your powers of rete-oh, you're here, I'll stop singing now. No regrets on that cliffhanger, but hopefully you're getting closer as to why Undyne fell into a slump. Anyways, be sure to leave a review on the way out, and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!**


	6. Chapter 6

*****Hello, everyone! This is my second attempt at uploading this because my computer hates me, apparently. Anyways, Alphys and Undyne belong to Toby Fox, Arrow belongs to me, and let's roll!**

**Chapter Six: The Cause, The Help**

Undyne sighed. "In the past, the longest I've ever been out for any injury is six weeks, when I broke my ankle. But when those doctors said up to nine months, or at least six months... I kinda gave up. I didn't want to be out, especially since you've still got two more weeks on maternity leave with Arrow. But since I had to, I fell into a slump. Even with one eye, I've got a use!" she exclaimed.

She looked at Alphys, a true look of hopelessness on her face. "I'm useless to you, to my son, and to my friends. And I hate it."

Alphys let that sink in. And... it made total sense.

Throughout her lifetime, Undyne put her all into whatever she did. Even if it ended badly. Now, she couldn't even walk without crutches, constricting her from even doing things with her family and friends. Her slump made sense now.

"D-do you know what y-you can d-do?" Alphys asked softly.

"What?" Undyne asked at the same volume. "Y-you can do j-just as the d-doctors say, n-no matter how bad it m-makes you f-feel. Because if you f-follow their d-d-direction, th-then that brings you c-closer to your A-ACL healing, and c-closer to your l-life back. I u-understand getting d-depressed-I was too for a l-long t-time. But you gotta c-come out of it. You h-helped me. Maybe I can h-help you. But you g-gotta stop, y'know, m-moping around," Alphys explained.

Undyne thought on that for a few minutes. And, for the first time in two weeks, she smiled. "I'll try. I'll do whatever those doctors ask. Including the one I married," she said.

"Very c-clever," Alphys said, sarcasm tinting her voice.

Undyne snorted. "No need for that tone. Bottom line is, I'll take back my will to live. For you and for Arrow," she promised.

"Th-thanks. Can you, uh, start a-acting like my w-wife again?" Alphys asked. "You can start by sleeping with me again," Undyne said as she laid down.

Alphys laid down as well. She moved forward enough for Undyne to meet her in a soft kiss. They held it out, only stopping when they had to breathe.

"I missed this," Undyne said. As they fell asleep, Alphys said one last thing.

"I missed you."

*****To my comments saying that this was sad: things are looking up now, huh? Anyways, be sure to leave a review on the way out, and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!**


	7. Chapter 7

*****Hello, everyone! Um... would you be mad if I told you that this is the last chapter? Well, it is. Sue me-I just have my Epcot Japan wallet. Anyways, Alphys and Undyne belong to Toby Fox, Arrow, Dr. Culver, and some BS medical knowledge (sorry) belong to me, and let's roll!**

**Chapter Seven: Back Again**

Over the time Undyne was in her accursed brace, she was... on and off about her situation. She would have days where she just felt like a waste of space, but she thought back to Alphys' words, and at least the motivation to keep going returned.

Alphys was there to encourage her and help her around the house, but her time time on maternity leave did end. She had to go back to work at some point.

So, that left Undyne alone to look after Arrow, because she was off for her injury. And she figured that Josh and Mason had her covered; it was no big deal.

However... looking after an infant is easier said than done, especially when you're on crutches. But Undyne managed to do so, even if magic and improvising were involved. She made up with Papyrus for two reasons: she was his friend, and she occasionally needed his help.

It was a long story to tell when Alphys came home to a trashed kitchen and two monsters trying in vain to fix it. (Luckily, it wasn't that bad to do so. It was more time-consuming than anything, really.)

But months passed by. Undyne did her best in physical therapy and got the hang of getting around on her crutches. Alphys took more responsibility, but she knew that she could handle it. Arrow grew, and had even said his first word: spear. There was no surprise there, in all honesty.

But this all had to come together after a few months, right?

XxX

"Well, Undyne, are you ready to be free, so to speak?" the doctor at the physical therapy clinic, Dr. Culver, asked.

"Please," Undyne said. She limped over and sat on the examination table, propping up her leg and resting her crutches against the wall nearby. Alphys sat down in the chair nearby, having driven her wife there.

Arrow sat on her lap. He was almost a year old now. He would occasionally stand up against a couch or a table, but he would fall right back down after a few seconds.

"Well, let's get started," Dr. Culver said. He began undoing the brace on Undyne's leg.

"Mom?" Arrow chirped, curious as to what was happening. "The d-doctor's just helping her. Sh-she'll be able to w-walk again," Alphys said, kissing her son's head. "Walk?" Arrow echoed. He kept quiet after that.

Undyne was more focused on the clicks of her brace being taken off, drumming her fingers on the table in anticipation.

"Excited, I see," Dr. Culver commented as he worked, sounding amused. "Just get the thing off," Undyne said. Dr. Culver laughed to himself, but kept on.

When the brace was off, he moved it out of the way. "I'm just going to examine you leg, just to make sure you're clear. And if you are, then you get up and you go home. Hopefully, you don't tear your ACL or do anything of that sort again," he said.

Alphys nodded; she hoped that more than she could voice.

Dr. Culver pressed on areas of Undyne's leg, asking her to bed it, straighten it, and if anything hurt. She complied to it all, getting impatient after a few minutes.

"Here we go. Get up, take a few steps. But be easy about it," Dr. Culver said.

Undyne got off of the table and finally, _finally _got to walk.

She went to the end of the room and back, then smiled. "I guess you and Paps don't have to worry about me anymore," she said. "I-I'm always gonna w-worry," Alphys stated. Undyne leaned down to kiss her.

However, Arrow had his own plan. He squirmed off of Alphys' lap and fell onto the hard floor on his backside. He got up and used Alphys' leg as a support system.

Then, he let go and took about four steps before he fell on his stomach. He sat up and smiled at his parents.

"Well, how about that for a lucky coincidence?" Dr. Culver asked, smiling warmly.

Undyne picked up Arrow and held him, ruffling his crimson hair playfully. "I guess you were waiting on me, huh?" she asked jokingly. Arrow rested his head against Undyne's chest, giving a small yawn in reply. "I th-think it's his n-nap time," Alphys commented.

"Well, you girls head on," Dr. Culver said.

As Undyne walked out with Alphy next to her and Arrow playing with her long ponytail, she was smiling. She was back on her feet, and her life was back to normal

**The End**

*****And there you have it. I wanted to get this up before my trip, so here it is. Side note: go and look up "Power of NEO" by Lemonlight Productions on YouTube. It's really good. I'm listening to it while multitasking between this and homework. Anyways, be sure to leave a review on the way out and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!**


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